• Laurence Sterne and Oliver Goldsmith (prose fiction )
– drama
• Richard Brinsley Sheridan
– pre-romanticism • William Blake and Robert Burns (poetry)
Classification
ended in a compromise between the
aristocracy and bourgeoisie. England became
a constitutional monarchy and power passed
from the King to the Parliament and the
History of English
Literature
18th century
十八世纪 英国启蒙时期 the Age of Reason
A review of the 17th century
• The 17th century is the period of Revolution. The Revolution contains Bourgeois Revolution and the Puritan Revolution. Bourgeois Revolution then was in progress vigorously in Europe and parts of other places over the world. They are thirst for Original capital and colony to support their development and expansion.
A. Social background
2. The two main hostile parties: • • the liberal Whigs — safeguard popular liberty; the conservative Tories — leave as much authority as possible in the royal hands
• Why is it called enlightenment?
Its purpose was to enlighten the whole
world with the light of modern
philosophical and artistic ideas.
•
The enlighteners celebrated reason or rationality, quality and science. reason and rules and advocated universal education.
• Puritanism is religious doctrine of the
revolutionary bourgeoisie during the
revolution. The puritans believed in thrift,
hard work and so on, and condemned worldly
Realism; Sentimentalism ;
Pre-romanticism;
Romanticism
Development
• Early 18th Century – neo-classicism
• Alexander Pope (poetry)
– prose literature • Addison and Steele (periodicals ) – the first realistic fiction • Defoe and Swift
Asia, Africa and North America.
B. Enlightenment in EngБайду номын сангаасish literature
1. Enlightenment:
The 18th century in England is known as the Age of Enlightenment or the Age of Reason. The enlightenment movement was a progressive intellectual movement which flourished in France and swept through the whole Western Europe at the time. The movement was a furtherance of the Renaissance of 15th and 16th centuries.
• prone to accept bourgeois relationships as rightful and reasonable relationships among people. • writers’ closer look at the social problems and putting things to rights by criticizing the society • the problem of man superseding all other problems in literature
• They called for a reference to order,
• They repudiate the false religious doctrines about the viciousness of human nature; They prove that man is born kind and honest; if depraved, only due to the influence of corrupted social environment.
Addison, Richard Steele, Daniel Defoe, Samuel
Richardson.
Radical group: They struggled for more resolute democratization in the management of the government, and defended the interests of the exploited masses. Representatives: Jonathan Swift, Henry Fielding, Oliver Goldsmith, Richard Brinsley, Sheridan.
– 格雷 （感伤主义） – 布雷克 （前浪漫主义） – 彭斯 （前浪漫主义）
• Prose had a rapid development (age of prose) • Novel writing made a big advancement
• Poetry reached its stylistic perfection
A. Social background
3. The press became a mighty power, and any
writer with a talent for argument or satire was almost certain to be hired by party leaders. 4. The social life developed rapidly. in earlier ages: individualism in the 1st half of this century: sociability
reason and emotion
• a literature of reason, common sense, and
repudiation of enthusiasm and sentiment
Main literary trends
(Enlightenment)
Neo-Classicism ;
(the Golden Age)
The state power passed from the king gradually to the parliament and the cabinet ministers →capitalist system was established in England.
A. Social background
5. With the advent of the 18th century, there sprang into life a public movement known as the enlightenment.
Abroad
A vast expansion of British colonies in
• What about literature in this age?
C. Literary features
• an age of prose rather than poetry
• a balance between respect for the old and
the emergence of new forms, and between
• 18世纪前期 – 蒲伯 （古典主义） – 艾迪生和斯蒂尔（古典 主义\期刊文学） – 笛福与斯威夫特（现实 主义小说） • 18世纪后期
– 撒缪尔 约翰逊 （古典 主义） – 劳伦斯 斯泰恩（感伤 主义） – 哥尔斯密 （感伤主义）
– 谢莱丹 （18世纪的最 伟大的戏剧家）
• 18世纪中期
– 理查生（现实主义） – 菲尔丁（现实主义） – 斯摩莱特（现实主义）
cabinet ministers.
18th century